


The Lost Knight

by Arystina



Category: Dragon Quest XI
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Blood and Injury, But we all knew that, Canonical Character Death, Dragon Quest XI Act III Spoilers, Fix-It of Sorts, Fluff and Angst, Friendship, Gen, Hendrik and Jasper, Hendrik's POV primarily, Hurt/Comfort, I'm sorry but Jasper got the short straw in the game, Isolation, Magic, Magic more complicated than in game, Major Character Injury, Mordegon is a twisted bastard, Mystery Objects, Nintendo Switch exclusive scene spoilers, Psychological Trauma, Redemption, Self-Doubt, Self-Esteem Issues, Tags May Change, Whump, some in-game dialogue included
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-13
Updated: 2021-01-27
Packaged: 2021-03-17 12:26:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,612
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28725066
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Arystina/pseuds/Arystina
Summary: Hendrik was a man of action and few words, but when everything he thought he knew is called into question, he wonders if he really is the hero knight everyone believes him to be. Enter the Luminary and his friends. Hendrik joins them in their quest to defeat the new evil threatening the land, and perhaps unravel the mystery of why his old friend had betrayed everything they'd stood for in the process.Nothing is as it seems.
Comments: 8
Kudos: 9





	1. Doubts and Insecurities

**Author's Note:**

> In my playthrough of the game, I named the Luminary Elian (El-ee-N), so that'll be his name in this story. I've tried my best to keep everyone in character, and some speech has been taken directly from the game, but it's been a long time since I've written anything so please bear with me, I'm quite rusty.
> 
> This takes place in Act 3, though many events will take place more in the background, and will be focusing more on Hendrik and his relationship (gen, maybe pre-slash) with Jasper. This story will veer away from canon the further the story progresses.

* * *

Chapter 1

* * *

Hendrik was a man who was loyal to a fault. He himself acknowledged that perhaps this was not such a good thing, to blindly follow orders without question. Yet, he was unsure of how to approach his king to voice his concerns, the very man who had plucked him from the burned remains of his homeland and has given him shelter and a new lease on life. Particularly when Hendrik's concern was the result of the situation caused by the hand of the king himself.

Jasper, cut down before his very eyes, already unarmed and defeated, without so much as a second thought before King Carnelian turned his attention towards the Luminary and his companions, the death of the blonde knight seemingly already gone from his mind.

And now, from the moment they'd stepped foot back in Heliodor Castle, the king had ordered the guards to clear out Jasper's room immediately, while at the same time calling for preparations to be made to celebrate the Luminary.

It all just felt...wrong.

While Hendrik had staunchly and unwaveringly carried out each and every order of his king, something in this gave him pause. Was this truly the king he served? The man, so devoted to law and order and serving justice, to kill one of his knights, one who was already down on the ground and begging, without even the mention of a trial? The very same man who once called them sons when he presented them with the twin tokens of fealty? A man who now seemed so cold and callous in his orders and actions.

Perhaps time had changed things. The fall of Dundrasil had affected thousands, and even King Carnelian had not been spared when Princess Jade had been all but assumed lost.

The Princess. Alive and well, yet, again, the king had not reacted quite as Hendrik had expected. He'd acknowledged her presence, stated he was pleased, though the emotion did not appear to reach his eyes. Then...he'd simply walked away, Hendrik not far behind. It is not the reaction he'd thought one might have after discovering their child, and heir to an entire kingdom, was alive. He wondered if he was in any position to judge though. After all, he was neither a king nor a parent.

A loud banging brought Hendrik out of his thoughts and he looked towards the soldiers who were clearing out Jasper's desk. After the king had given the order, Hendrik had decided to oversee the command being carried out. Or rather, he wanted to be present before everything of Jasper was stripped away, trying to find some solace amongst his old friend's things, to find...something, anything, that would tell him why the other knight had made the decision to betray his kingdom.

_Bang!_

He moved closer, watching a soldier attempt to pry open on of the bottom drawers of the desk.

"Move." He practically growled the word at the other man, who seemed to sense that the knight was not in a pleasant mood and all but jumped aside as Hendrik approached and knelt down in front of the drawer.

It was scuffed, but unyielding, which was unsurprising to Hendrik. It was ironwood after all, a rare wood from the Manglegrove, yet a common material found in the palace and the homes of the upper class. Sturdy, heavy, and near unbreakable using simple tools. Even fire had difficulty burning such wood. Never mind the dangers of just harvesting it in the monster infested region, only expert woodsmen and carpenters using enchantments could even begin to mold it into something usable.

Which made the resulting furniture, particularly desks, a favorite for those looking to protect their possessions.

Or hide them.

A small keyhole peeked out from below the handle.

_A key..._

Hendrik's eyes widened slightly as he recalled the the other day at Yggdrasil. He reached into the pouch at his side where he kept a bit of gold, and other small things, and withdrew the token of fealty that was all that had remained of his fallen comrade after he'd vanished in a cloud of smoke. Dangling alongside the golden pendant was a small key. _Perhaps...?_ He took it and slid it into the keyhole, a perfect fit. A click, and he slowly opened the drawer.

Inside, nestled amidst the folds of a worn cloth, lay a small orb. It glowed a disturbing dark purple and black, swirls of it dancing around on the surface. Tentatively, Hendrik reached out, pushing back the fabric to further expose the object. He could almost feel the darkness rolling off of it in waves, and yet, there was something strangely familiar about it. He looked deeper into the orb, and at it's very center, was a faint glow of gold. It flickered, seeming to struggle against the darkness, but not extinguishing.

Against his better judgement, Hendrik picked it up, the dark tendrils receding into the orb where his hands touched, and Hendrik almost swore that the light at it's core shone a bit brighter than before.

"Sir? Shall we destroy it?"

He'd almost forgotten he wasn't alone. Eyes still fixated on the object, Hendrik gave a partial shake of his head. Part of him, the fiercely loyal part, wanted to hand it over, let it be destroyed like all of Jasper's other possessions as the king had ordered, but the other part of him, the questioning, perhaps maybe even naive part of him, was telling him he needed to protect the orb at all costs. "I-" He attempted to find the right words. "I will take care of it myself." He stood abruptly, sliding the orb out of sight. "As you were."

He knew the soldiers would not question him, and they didn't, returning to their task without hesitation. Hendrik left them to it.

_Protect it. Keep it safe._

Hendrik retreated to his quarters across the hall, and carefully set the orb on his bed, fearing it would roll off the surface if he placed it anywhere else.

It was definitely not his imagination; the tiny light at the orb's center was certainly bigger than before, and there was a tingle of warmth as he traced his gloved fingertips over it.

Would a dark object cause this sort of reaction? Hendrik didn't know. He'd seen his fair share of evil magicks and cursed items over the years, but not one had had any semblance of light to be found. He was no expert though, simply a man of brawn who was a master of the battlefield. The critical thinking he'd always left to Jasper, who had much more preferred his nose in a book.

Which begged the question: why had Jasper been in possession of such a peculiar item?

Unfortunately he'd never be able to ask his comrade about it, and the orb simply sat on his bed, the light pulsating like a candle flame in the night, unable to give the grieving knight any answers.

* * *


	2. Truths and Revelations

* * *

Chapter 2

* * *

The Luminary and his companions arrived a few short hours later. Preparations for the banquet were still underway, servants running to and fro in a hurry to get everything set up. The kitchen itself was chaotic to say the least, with multiple cooks barking orders and trying not to trip over each other's feet. Trying being the key word. Hendrik could not help but wince in sympathy upon hearing a clatter of of pots and pans, along with the shattering of a bowl, and the subsequent cursing that followed.

Upon meeting with the king, the group had been escorted to the main hall to enjoy the dancing and music until dinner was served. Hendrik, though given leave to join the festivities, found he could not bring himself to celebrate and instead went on patrol through the castle. He sought to distract himself in his duties, and to ensure that everything ran smoothly as the celebrations extended into the night.

It had been a long while since there had been such an event held at the castle, not since before the fall of Dundrasil he wagered. With so many people present, he wanted to ensure that none got up to any mischief. Not that he expected any, but the entire populace of Cobblestone _had_ been locked in the dungeons for several months now, subsisting on mainly water and bread, and he wasn't entirely sure that none of them held a grudge. They seemed to be an especially kind people however, for all the hardships they'd been made to endure since the Luminary, who'd been accused of being the Darkspawn, had first appeared in Heliodor. Other than gorging themselves on the variety of delicacies laid out in the dining hall, there were no signs that showed them ever having been prisoners.

Seeing their relaxed postures and the smiles on their faces, Hendrik was gladdened by the fact that he'd arrived in the small village just in time to stop the execution order Jasper had given. Something he'd never expected his comrade to do given their oath to serve the weak.

Another thing to add to the ever growing list of things he'd never thought the other knight would do. He sighed. It seemed as if he never knew Jasper at all.

"Something on your mind?"

The voice of Princess Jade pulled him out of his thoughts, making him turn around from his intended route towards the throne room. She was leaning back against the railing of the great staircase, worry evident in her bright amethyst eyes.

"I'm fine, Princess," he replied, speaking just loud enough for her to hear over the noise of the party below. He did not wish to bother her, of all people, with his problems.

She suddenly straightened up, taking the all too familiar stance with her hands on her hips when she was getting ready to scold him, and despite having seen it so many times before when she was a small child, he still found himself feeling uncomfortable under her intense gaze. It seemed that comes things never changed.

"Liar," she snipped at him. "I know you too well, remember? I may not have lived here in the castle for the last sixteen years, but you're still the same old Hendrik that you've always been." She tilted her head. "Not to mention that you've never been good at hiding your feelings. You've been sulking about the place since we've arrived. I doubt there's a person here that can't see how miserable you are."

Was he really so transparent?

Hendrik attempted to evade the situation. "You need not burden yourself with my troubles, Princess." He attempted a quick bow, planning on excusing himself, but ended up stumbling back a foot when the girl-no-woman, nearly tackled him in a hug. He stiffened. "P-princess! Th...this is highly ina-"

"Shut up," she interjected, resting a cheek against his chest. "I don't care about being prim and proper," she continued. "You're not _just_ my knight, Hendrik, you're my friend, too." Jade looked up at him as she let go and stepped back. "You're hurting. Anyone can see that. I know you and Jasper were close-"

"Were we?" Hendrik couldn't stop the words from coming out of his mouth, nor the bitter tone that seeped into them. "If we were so close then why did I not see what he was becoming? Why did I not..."

"I don't know." Jade frowned. "But I do know that the dark can be blinding. Father believed for years that Elian was the Darkspawn, despite having once been one of his most avid supporters. Though..." She trailed off, looking a bit perturbed.

"Princess?"

She shook her head, refocusing her attention on him. "All I mean to say is that Mordegon is the one to blame. He's been hurting people for years, pulling the stings from the shadows. We already know that he's the one responsible for the destruction of Dundrasil, possibly even Zwaardsrust as well given that it too was destroyed by monsters in a single night. I'm sure it was also him who manipulated my father into believing that Elian was responsible for everything that had gone wrong. It's not impossible to think it wasn't him who twisted Jasper as well."

Hendrik had frozen at the mention of his homeland, now naught but a pile of rubble left of a once great kingdom. First Jasper, now his home too? If not for his gloves, Hendrik's nails would be drawing blood for as hard as he was clenching his fists.

"Mordegon will pay, I promise," Jade said. "Wherever he's hiding, we'll find him. Elian's acting anxious, so we'll likely be back on the road in a day or two, and I'm planning on going with him."

"So soon?" Hendrik's brow furrowed. "You've only just returned home. Does His Majesty know of this?"

She shrugged. "I did mention it to him, but he said nothing. Even if he had though, I'd still leave. I'm not a little girl anymore."

 _Odd_ , Hendrik thought, but replied, "Indeed not. I meant what I said before. You've become quite the warrior maiden. The Luminary is lucky to have you fighting by his side." And he meant it. Speaking of, he needed to make amends to the boy before his departure.

“Thank you, Hendrik.” Jade gave a small smile. “And please…take care of yourself.”

He dipped his head, and, after bidding her a good night, he continued his rounds, roaming through the castle long after the festivities had died down. He had much to think about.

* * *

He’d been sitting at his desk, rolling the orb between his hands, when he heard the commotion. Raised, angry voices reverberated through the castle, bouncing off the stone walls. In a heartbeat, he grabbed his greatsword and scabbard, swinging it over his shoulder in one deft move as he burst into the hall, quickly tracing the noise to the guest rooms.

It wasn’t until he reached his destination that he realized he still had the orb firmly grasped in his left hand, but had little time to think about it as he took in the sight before him.

Jade and her companions were all crowded in the doorway, shock on their faces; the Luminary in the center of the room, the sword of life drawn and pointed at none other than the king. Or rather, whatever fiend had taken upon the image of the king, for King Carnelian did not have such burning red eyes. Caught, the monster snarled, teeth bared like a sabrecat’s, then vanished in a flash of dark energy.

Hendrik, so in shock he was at seeing the man he’d served since he was a boy become a demon, barely registered the Luminary’s friends calling it out in the room for the fiend to show himself.

“A monster,” he uttered. “I’ve been serving a monster.”

Jade tugged on his arm before leaving the room, and numbly he followed, tucking the orb into his pouch all while trying to process what he’d just witnessed. Moments later, he found himself alongside the group in the middle of the throne room.

The king of Heliodor, or whatever monster he’d become, stood before the throne. He slowly turned around with a feral growl.

“No more giving us the runaround, you!” the small girl, Veronica, if Hendrik recalled correctly, shouted at the demon, pointing a finger at him accusingly. “We’ve got you cornered!”

“Now let the king go and show us your true form, fiend!” the taller blonde added.

The creature started laughing, a cruel and heartless sound that echoed throughout the room. Then the king’s body jerked, twisting unnaturally, a pained look on his face. A dark miasma emerged, taking form as the king’s body slumped onto the throne, discarded.

A gray skinned being was standing before them now, black horns jutting outwards from a spiky swatch of red hair, another horn protruding from the chin. Malevolent eyes stared down at them, bright with mirth. “Unmasked at last!” the demon grinned widely, sharp teeth bared. “I have been enjoying Carnelian’s…hospitality since the day Dundrasil fell.”

 _So long?_ Hendrik felt horrified.

The demon continued his taunting monologue. “But the game ends here. I have wasted too much time already waiting for you to lead me to the Sword of Light. And since I was unable to steal it from you, it seems I must take it by force. Very well. Come to Mordegon like good little lambs…and die!” He swept his staff outward, spreading miasma through the room like a thick fog.

Lord Robert snarled, an anger the knight had never seen in him twisting his face. “Mordegon! So it’s you!” he growled. “I’ve waited years for this day to come!”

So this was indeed the fiend Mordegon… Rage welled up inside Hendrik. “Not only Jasper, but His Majesty too?” he accused. “Your deception shall not go unpunished, devil!”

The monster, Mordegon, laughed again. “You’ve been a serviceable puppet over the years, Hendrik,” he crooned. “But it is time you joined your wretched kinfolk…in hell!”

There it was. The confirmation of Jade’s suspicions, but to hear it from the mouth of the perpetrator himself... “So it was you? You who…massacred my people?” Hendrik drew his sword, both hands firmly clasped around the handle. “I’ll kill you!”

“I was all you, wasn’t it?” Jade had her fist firmly against her heart, her body quaking with barely contained rage. ‘The destruction of Zwaardsrust, of Dundrasil… All the families torn apart…” She glared up at the demon. “You’ve stolen so much from so many… And now you’re going to pay!”

Hendrik shifted, moving to stand adjacent to the boy whose very existence he once cursed. A lie, one of many he was sure, told by the monster before them. “I stand with you, Luminary,” the knight declared. “My loved ones, my countrymen-they must be avenged.”

 _Jasper too,_ he thought. If not for this fiend, his comrade would still be alive.

“Well, Luminary? Come!” Mordegon spread his arms wide, mocking them. “Give me your power, that I may rule over this world unopposed!”

No. The only thing Mordegon would be getting was his own death, and Hendrik swung his sword wide as they leaped forward into battle.

* * *

It was over nearly as quickly as it had begun. The Luminary, Elian, possessed a strength Hendrik did not expect from one on young. The boy’s skill had jumped in leaps and bounds since their encounter not that long ago at the ruins of Dundrasil. Was this the power of the Luminary? Whatever it was, Hendrik was thankful to be fighting alongside him now.

The devil, Mordegon, was hunched over before them, breathing haggardly, before roaring to the sky at his defeat. As his body slowly began to dissipate, his gaze fixated back on the group, narrowed eyes scanning the room in front of him, before settling on the Luminary. Or rather, through him, and Mordegon chuckled softly.

“I see.” He closed his eyes briefly. “So be it…” he hissed at them. “But do not think…that you are the only one who has defied the flow of time.” Mordegon then turned towards Hendrik. “And you, Zwaardsrustian,” he sneered. “I know what it is you took for yourself. I can sense it even now.” His grin grew wider. “But it matters not. Without two halves…it can never be whole again. You’ve only delayed the inevitable.” He laughed again, loud, vicious, then screamed, before exploding into a cloud of dark energy. It quickly dissipated into the air, leaving no trace of the devil.

“What…you took for yourself?” The blue-haired thief, Erik, looked questioningly at the knight. “What was he talking about?” The others also turned to look at him, and Hendrik opened his mouth to speak, but at that moment, a small groan came from the direction of the throne, capturing everyone’s attention.

“Father!” Jade rushed towards the fallen royal’s side. “Father, are you alright?”

King Carnelian appeared dazed, blinking groggily up at the young woman hovering over him. “Jade…? Can it…really be you?” The king’s brow furrowed in confusion. “Have I been…dreaming? The last I remember is the attack on Dundrasil… After that, all is black.”

Hendrik thanked whatever gods were watching for small mercies. It would be difficult enough to explain to the king all that had transpired without the man remembering it too and not having been able to stop it. He watched as the Luminary cautiously approached the king, and his hand began to glow.

It caught King Carnelian by surprise. “Wait! That mark!” He stared up at the youth in disbelief. “The child. The Luminary! But…you were a mere babe in arms when I last saw you…” The king suddenly looked weary. “There is clearly much we need to discuss… But you must forgive me…I am still feeling…rather faint.” He started coughing, looking to age far beyond his years.

“Father! You mustn’t overexert yourself!” Jade carefully took a hold of her parent’s arm and helped him stand. “Come on, let’s get you to bed.” She turned towards her companions. “I need to look after him. We’ll meet here again tomorrow, alright?”

As she eased the king down the steps, Hendrik moved to assist her, but she waved a hand to dismiss him. “I got this,” she said softly, just loud enough for him to hear, and he hung back, giving a small nod. He understood. Sixteen, nearly seventeen, years was far too long to be away from home. She needed the time alone with her father.

They all watched as the pair left the room, quiet until the jester, who seemed all too familiar to Hendrik, spoke up.

“Those two are going to have a lot to catch up on, hm? A lot…”

Hendrik gave a small hum in agreement.

* * *


	3. Guidance and Dreams

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, I better drop this notice here as well since I am actively working on this fic. So...updates will be sporadic. I work on writing when am alert, which is not as often as I would like it to be. My heart has been giving me some trouble and doctors are running tests to figure out what's going on. I spent most of the time...well...sleeping. I burn what little energy I do have really fast, so I'm only able to work on this a bit here, and a bit there. I do have this story mostly planned out though, it's just a matter of piecing it together and filling in the blanks.
> 
> That said, there's a good chunk of game content in here, mostly with the Watchers, though later, maybe next chapter, will be the Seer. I hate to include so much game dialogue, but it's necessary since this story does follow the canon story with Calasmos, though it will progressively be pushed more into the background the further this story goes. After this chapter, and the upcoming bit with the Seer, everything should be established so I can delve more into what everyone is curious about: that mysterious little orb.

* * *

Chapter 3

* * *

It did not take long for word to spread through the castle, and then the city, that King Carnelian had been under the spell of an evil demon.

Spell, not possessed, but Hendrik didn’t think that the details mattered all that much when the reality was that Heliodor’s proud king had been used as a tool by the darkness. The reality that nowhere, not even mighty Heliodor, was safe from monsters and shadows.

While the populace was working themselves up into a nervous, fearful mess, King Carnelian recovered in his chambers as best as a person could after having nearly two decades of their life taken from them. At most, he’d acknowledged remembering fragments, but the memories were so brief that the king had only more questions than answers.

Jade had convened with her friends and the Luminary the day after Mordegon’s defeat, trying to decide what to do next. The majority of them did not have any clear idea, though Lord Robert stated he was dead set on rebuilding Dundrasil. Hendrik did not doubt for a moment that the former monarch would succeed.

On the third day, King Carnelian summoned the knight to his side. He’d gotten bits and pieces of what had occurred from his daughter, but it was Hendrik who had been by his side since it all began on that fateful day in Dundrasil.

Hendrik hesitated at first, but with a gentle verbal nudge from his king, he took a seat in the cushioned chair by the king’s bedside and began from the beginning. He told the older man everything he could remember. From when he’d found him, sword drawn and stained red, standing over the body of King Irwin of Dundrasil, of how he’d told the knight that the other royal had gone mad, caused by the birth of his ‘accursed’ son, the Luminary, the _Darkspawn_. He told him of how he’d cut all ties to the remaining kingdoms, ignoring their letters and ambassadors. He told him of the execution order he’d given after the Luminary, now a young man, had ironically traveled to Heliodor seeking an audience, and of the boy’s escape from the dungeons soon after. He told of the blockades that had been enacted on towns and villages across Erdrea, and the order for him and Jasper to pursue the youth to whatever ends.

He told him of Jasper’s fall into darkness, of his death, but declined to say that it was Mordegon himself still under the guise of the king, that had cut the knight down.

King Carnelian sat in silence through all this, and when Hendrik finished he stared at the floor, not daring to meet the royal’s eyes for fear of what he might find there. Anger? Sadness? He was unsure which was worse. For all his courage, for all his strength, Hendrik felt weak and pathetic. His loyalty had been so strong that it had blinded him to all the changes in his king. He’d blamed it all on grief, on the loss of Princess Jade, but was it really an excuse for everything that happened in the years since?

The king seemed to read his mind, reaching over from the bed to rest a hand on the knight’s knee. “You are not to blame for this, Hendrik. If anything, it is I who should be held accountable for not being able to resist that fiend.”

Hendrik looked up, alarmed. “Your Majesty, you mustn’t blame yourself! Morgedon was an immensely powerful demon that I doubt anyone could have resisted his machinations.”

King Carnelian clasped his hands together in his lap. “Which is precisely why you cannot find fault in your actions, my boy. As you say, Mordegon was powerful. Powerful enough to wipe out two kingdoms, to steal my body and rule Heliodor for years with no one the wiser… It is only because of the Luminary that we are here today having this conversation.”

“I still believe I should have noticed _something_ …”

“And question your king?” The other man gave a shake of his head. “No. You had no cause to suspect me of being anyone other than myself. Even if you had, I feel I would be here today mourning the loss of two sons instead of one.” Carnelian’s eyes appeared to water, but Hendrik did not comment. “You have done your kingdom proud, Hendrik. Never doubt that. I fear many more lives might have been lost had you not been there to intervene.”

He was not wrong. Hendrik had overturned a number of execution orders from Jasper and fellow soldiers. Even the Luminary’s thief companion, Erik, had been spared by his hand from an immediate death sentence on the streets of Heliodor.

Carnelian smiled faintly, having gotten through to the knight. “Have more faith in yourself and your abilities, Hendrik. You are greater than you realize.” He closed his eyes. “Now…if you’ll forgive me, I must rest, but I shall be seeing everyone tomorrow. There are…some amends I must make.”

* * *

Vaguely Hendrik wondered if the week could get any worse. Just as things had started to look up, what with Mordegon gone and King Carnelian recovered, Erdwin’s Lantern suddenly fell from the sky and shattered. Now in it’s place, a thick black mass hung low over the Celestial Sands north of Gallopolis, a dark star, as the people had quickly taken to calling it.

As one of the Luminary’s companions, the blonde priestess, Serena, had said, it was something truly evil. She was right. Even at this distance he could sense the overwhelming dark aura. He could barely suppress a shiver from crawling down his spine. Even Mordegon had not emitted so much darkness. Was this truly the legacy that the Luminary of Legend had left behind?

He supposed he’d find out. As King Carnelian asked for the Luminary to go investigate, the knight in turn asked his king if he could be permitted to accompany the boy and his friends. Surprisingly, Carnelian seemed rather please with his request, though the surprise lessened drastically when the king leaned over and whispered that he was to protect Princess Jade. Not that Hendrik needed reminding. He’d sworn to do just that the day she was born.

He swore yet another oath that day, this time to the Luminary. _Elian_ , he reminded himself, the boy insisting on him calling him by his given name. No nicknames, titles or otherwise.

“I’m just plain old Elian,” the boy had told him.

Hendrik was used to titles and formality however, having been drilled into him as a child. It would take some getting used to.

While he could not atone for all he had done, he hoped that by aiding Elian on his quest, he could make some amends at least in part. He said as much, when he pledged himself to be Elian’s ‘sword, shield, and unswerving companion.’

The jester made a quiet remark, “Oh, don’t be so dramatic, Hendrik,” but the knight pretended not to hear. That familiarity he had when he was around the lithe man kept nagging at him, like an itch he couldn’t scratch, yet he still could not place where he’d seen the other before. He was sure that eventually, as they traveled together, he would figure it out.

And, as he rested his hand on top of the pouch at his hip, he hoped he’d learn more about the mysterious little orb as well.

* * *

Upon reaching the Emerald Coast, things proceeded to get stranger. If someone had told Hendrik that one day he’d find himself riding upon the back of a whale, he’d not have believed it. To tell him he’d be on the back of a _flying_ whale…well…he’d have referred that person to the nearest physician. As it was, the knight thought that perhaps he himself was the one who had gone insane, still trying to process the enormous creature before him. The other had the same incredulous looks on their faces that he was sure was upon his. The only one not appearing at all surprised was Elian. The soft look in the boy’s blue eyes were more that of one seeing an old friend.

Cetacea. That’s what the Seer, who was yet another anomaly, had said. It was probably the beast’s name.

“All aboard!” the miniature sorceress cried.

Hendrik was not all too comfortable with the idea, but climbed up behind the rest of the group. The whale, Cetacea, took off, soaring through the clouds towards an island floating high above Erdrea.

If he’d thought the whale strange, his day was about to get stranger.

“This place is insane!” Erik remarked incredulously when they landed and looked around at their surroundings. “Who builds a town on a rock in the sky?”

“LONG AGO, ALL WAS PEACE. ALL WAS HARMONY. YGGDRASIL BLESSED US. FAITHFUL SERVANTS OF WORLD TREE.”

The voice seemed to echo within itself. The group looked down.

A strange teal creature looked back at them.

“What the-“ Erik yelped. The rest of the group made similar sounds of surprise.

“BUT SHADOW FELL,” the creature continued, unfazed by their reaction. “HORROR FROM ABOVE.” Its face grew angry. “CALASMOS. NOW SHADOW FALLS AGAIN. PERHAPS HE RETURNS. PERHAPS… CALASMOS. DARK ONE. HATER OF LIFE. BRINGER OF DEATH.”

It, or he, if the mustache was anything to go by, strode up to the group, looking up at Elian. “LUMINARY. CETATCEA RIDER. NO TIME. COME. SPEAK WITH ELDER.”

Lord Robert looked at his grandson. “These’ll be the Watchers that Seer lassie was on about then, eh?”

It was a valid assumption, and the creature did not appear to be of any threat. “It seems they know something of the Dark Star,” Hendrik agreed. “Come, let us speak with their Elder.”

They followed the teal colored Watcher, using floating platforms to get around the town. Havens Above, the Watcher informed them. There were a great many more Watchers of varying pastel skin tones roaming around, and surprisingly, there were even a few monsters residing in the area that had a fairly good grasp of human language and didn’t seem at all interested in fighting, unlike their kin down on the ground.

The Watcher led them before a large wall with a strange mural decorating its surface. A small ledge was at the bottom of its center, and upon it sat a green Watcher with a long white beard. He was holding a small staff with a blue orb, the only thing seeming to keep him upright as he slouched forward, snoring loudly.

The teal Watcher took position in front of the ledge besides one of its fellows. “THIS ELDER. WISEST WATCHER. EEGOLTAP.”

His pale companion looked up at the elder. “ELDER LIVES FOR ALL TIME. SEES ALL. SLEEPS MUCH. WAKES SELDOM.”

The teal one continued. “THOUGHT WOULD WAKE FOR LUMINARY. BUT NO.”

Hendrik felt his shoulders slump slightly in disappointment. _Now what?_

“LISTEN. TELL WATCHER STORY. LOOK.”

The group turned their attention towards the mural, and the Watcher explained how Calasmos had appeared, spreading darkness and corruption, and how Yggdrasil, the World Tree, gave Erdrea the Luminary of Legend, Erdwin, to defeat the monster alongside his companions, Drustan, Serenica, and Morcant.

“But if they beat him, what’s he doing back?” Lord Robert had a good point. Had something gone wrong?

The teal Watcher shook his head sadly. “…NOT KNOW. BUT KNOW THIS. YOUR BIRTH. YOUR COMING. YOU ARE LIGHT. LIGHT TO BANISH DARK. BUT HOW? …NOT KNOW.”

“…SEEDLINGS!”

The sound of a new voice made everyone turn their heads towards the top of the ledge.

“ELDER!” A Watcher cried. “ELDER WAKES!”

“ELDER SPEAKS! SILENCE! LISTEN!”

Eegoltap lifted his head. “SEEDLINGS OF YGGDRASIL. SEEDLINGS KNOW ALL.” He slumped forward again, having fallen asleep once more.

“SEEDLINGS! YES!” The teal Watcher turned towards Elian. “GIVE GIFT! FOLLOW! TEMPLE OF DAWN!” He led them back the way they had come, to the large building at the center of Havens Above.

There, within the temple, the Watcher informed them that the seedlings there would not be of help, but the three down on the surface perhaps would bear useful information, having been present during Calasmos’s supposed defeat. To show them the way, the Watcher bade Elian to take the Guiding Light, an immense burning flame that, with the Luminary’s power, was shrunk down into a pocket-sized version of itself.

As the teal Watcher finished telling them about the flame, they were all surprised when the elder, Eegoltap, made his presence known. Given the Watchers own reactions, it was apparently quite rare for elderly Watcher to wake, much less walk around. He had one last thing to give them.

Hand glowing, he reached out, and Hendrik and the others found themselves all glowing brightly.

And something else.

As the light faded, Hendrik felt…strong. Stronger than he’d ever felt before. He could almost feel electricity tingling at his fingertips. It seemed he was not the only one judging by how the others were reacting.

Eegoltap gave a nod. “SOME SAY LIGHT BRINGS DARK. LUMINARY BRINGS DARK ONE. NOT SO. MISTAKEN.”

Those words made Hendrik flinch internally. For too long he had believed that lie…

“LUMINARY MUST END THIS,” Eegoltap said. “BREAK CYCLE. YGGDRAGON’S BLESSINGS…” He fell silent, then slowly tipped backwards, falling onto the floor.

“ELDER!”

A loud snore answered them. The old Watcher had apparently exhausted himself.

“WAKING TIRES ELDER. WALKING TIRES ELDER. WE WILL CARRY.” The pale Watcher hoisted him up onto her shoulders and shuffled out of the temple.

It seemed that their business here was done. Hendrik looked at Elian. “Very well - to the lands below,” he said. “Let us seek out these seedlings.”

* * *

It was quiet. The only sounds were the crackle and popping of the logs in the campfire as the flames kept the bitter cold at bay. The smell of charred wood made Hendrik’s nose twitch. He rolled over onto his side, his back to the fire. The cool air of Mount Pang Lai was sharp, but refreshing. His mind began to drift again.

_"Hendrik..."_

A familiar voice echoed through his mind. He mumbled incoherently, but not quite waking.

“Hendrik.”

It was firmer this time. With a groan, he slowly sat up, rubbing a hand over his face. “What…?” He looked back at the fire, then past it to the person standing on the other side of it. His heart stopped.

There, wearing silver and gold armor, the twin to his own set, and long golden hair tied back in a ponytail, stood none other than his old comrade.

“Jasper!” Hendrik scrambled to his feet, the fog of sleep entirely gone from his mind.

The other man stared back at him, his face blank. “You needn’t shout. I’m not deaf, you know.”

“Jasper...” Hendrik hissed. “What – no… _how_ are you here? How did you survive?” Not that he was going to complain, but it was a valid question. Had Jasper disappeared from Yggdrasil to recover elsewhere? Had he truly survived the devastating wound caused by Mordegon?

Yet…as he stepped forward to verify that the other knight wasn’t an illusion, he could not help but notice that there was not a single mark on Jasper’s armor.

“Jasper?”

There was no response. Hendrik saw a flicker of emotion in Jasper’s eyes. Surely not…sorrow?

“Why?”

“Why what, Jasper?”

“Why, of all people,” Jasper spoke softly, “why did it have to be you?”

Hendrik had been reaching out to touch his friend, but faltered at his words. “I…I don’t understand what you mean.”

“Have I not suffered enough?” Jasper continued. “Now you torment me further by looking like _him_?” A single tear slid down the pale cheek, golden eyes pained. “Can you not leave me in peace?”

“Jasper...” Hendrik reached out again, but his hand met air as the other man turned and walked away. “Jasper!” He tried to follow, but the more he attempted to reach the blonde knight, the further away he became. Hendrik’s vision began to tunnel. _“Jasper!”_

He suddenly had no control over his body as it began to shake violently. “No- Stop!” His vision darkened.

“Hendrik-!”

He awoke with a start.

Everyone was staring down at him, concerned. Lord Robert was on one knee by his side, a hand resting on his shoulder. “Are ye alright, laddie? Ye were having a nightmare.”

A nightmare? He hadn’t had any since he was a small child. Was that really what it had been? Hendrik sat up carefully, getting his heavy breathing under control. “Uh…”

“Darling, you gave us all quite a scare,” Sylvando said quietly. “You were tossing and turning and wouldn’t wake.”

Hendrik felt his face heat up in embarrassment. Here he was, a grown man (a knight for Yggdrasil’s sake!) and he had woken everyone because of a dream. “I…am fine. My apologies for disturbing you all.”

“Oh, rubbish,” Veronica retorted. “You don’t have to say sorry. Everyone gets nightmares sometimes. It’s nothing to be ashamed of.”

“Besides, you’re one of us now,” Erik commented, running a hand through his spiky blue hair. “We got to look out for one another, yeah?” He yawned. “Well, I’m out. Night, everyone.” He went back over to where he’d been laying before and plopped back down, using his pack as a pillow.

Seeing as Hendrik was feeling better, the others followed suite, with Lord Robert giving him another pat on the shoulder before leaving his side. Jade stayed a moment longer.

“…Was it about Jasper?” she asked.

He cast his eyes downward.

She sighed. “I wish things could have been different.”

“As do I, Princess,” he replied sullenly.

He lay awake for a while longer, before finally giving back in to sleep.

This time, he did not dream.

* * *


End file.
